Managing a €200k student organization budget

As Treasurer of Phelma’s Student Office (BDE), I oversaw the financial operations of the school’s largest student associations, coordinating over €200,000 in funds and supporting the execution of more than 20 major events across the academic year.

My mission was to ensure transparent and efficient management of the budget, while supporting the logistical, administrative, and strategic needs of the team. I worked closely with event leads, vice-presidents, and school administration.

Main projects and responsibilities

  • 🧾 Financial management & accounting: Oversaw all revenue/expenses, handled budgeting for over 20 events, and maintained transparent accounting practices
  • 📊 Created a historical financial database (2015–today): Enabled smarter forecasting, automated financial summaries via Excel + Looker Studio
  • 🧺 Print shop optimization: Coordinated €24k in student orders, limited paper waste by reusing surplus, introduced deadline batching
  • 🤝 Partnership renegotiation: Reworked our Lydia (Sumeria) and Emblem partnerships, generating up to €10k in bonuses and improving student offers
  • 🎉 Event funding: Budgeted integration week (€90k), gala (€25k), Halloween and campaign events — ensuring accessibility and break-even points
  • 🌱 Sustainability & equity: Promoted price equity between majors, implemented greener practices (e.g. poly reuse), reduced waste
  • 🔁 Transition planning: Built resources and onboarding documents for next treasurers to ensure continuity and improvement year-to-year

Reflections & skills developed

This experience strengthened key engineering skills:

  • C1 – Designing engineering solutions: Developed systems for poly logistics and expense tracking
  • C2 – Applied research for innovation: Studied historical budget trends, restructured partnerships
  • C3 – Team collaboration: Worked with 40+ team members, liaised with sponsors, venue managers, and other student bodies
  • C5 – Societal & technological awareness: Advocated for inclusion, environmental consciousness, and efficient digital systems

Despite the heavy workload, I managed to balance academics with my role thanks to strong time management and digital tools (Excel). I prioritized studies while ensuring the BDE ran smoothly.